Ready meals and snacks are the current trend. They meet consumer needs for convenience and flexibility in a highly individualised society.

DEAL CAPTAIN’S OPINION

The number of single­person households is on the rise. At the same time, shopping habits are changing: many people are spending less time on preparing food, they tend to buy food more frequently, but in smaller quantities, and they are reaching for chilled ready meals and snacks increasingly often. The food retail sector is supporting this development: supermarket and discount chains alike are offering a growing variety of high­quality ready meals under their own brand names. This broad range, which is being updated on a continuous basis, allows them to differentiate themselves from their competitors. We believe that the companies in the More than Meals group are best positioned to exploit this potential under one roof. The idea is for them to benefit from synergies by collaborating and making use of each other’s customer relationships and sales structures, learning from each other and establishing best practices. By acquiring companies with complementary product ranges in other European countries, the group should be able to further strengthen its strategic position and generate additional synergy effects. This sort of platform would be the first of its kind in Europe.

PROFILE

Two companies, which will continue to be managed independently at the beginning, operate under the umbrella of the More than Meals management holding company. Abbelen is a leading German manufacturer that is responsible for producing more than half of all rissoles and ready-made hamburgers for the own-brand ranges of major supermarket and discount chains in Germany and its neighbouring countries. The company runs a state-of-the-art factory employing around 600 people in Tönisvorst (North Rhine-Westphalia).

Oscar Mayer is the market-leading manufacturer of chilled ready meals in the United Kingdom, which is by far the biggest and most innovative market for these products in Europe. The company has four sites in England and Wales. With around 2,650 employees, it produces more than three million chilled ready meals and snacks a week for the own-brand ranges of leading retailers and discount stores.

POTENTIAL FOR DEVELOPMENT

The companies that belong to the More than Meals group plan to expand the range of innovative products they offer and to make their activities, which are currently focused largely on the individual domestic markets, more i nternational. The focus will also be on operational improvements, for example, by automating production processes. The More than Meals platform should be expanded through the acquisition of further companies with a leading position in their national markets and whose products can also be marketed in more than one country. The concept will be imple mented by two managers with long-standing management experience in the food industry. Together with these managers, DBAG has identified the growth market for chilled ready meals and snacks and has identified potential acquisition targets.

FINANCIAL YEAR 2017

Abbelen’s revenues at the end of the financial year 2017 are likely to exceed the prior-year value. By contrast, the company expects to report lower earnings than in the financial year 2016. The fact that the usual renegotiations with customers prompted by the increase in commodity prices have been delayed due to transactions is putting temporary pressure on earnings. Oscar Mayer’s revenues are expected to surpass the prior-year value and expectations by a considerable margin in the financial year 2017. The company has been able to expand its business with its key customers. Oscar Mayer expects its earnings to be down on the previous year due to an increase in production costs.

OUTLOOK AND OBJECTIVES

Over the coming financial year, Abbelen and Oscar Mayer will be focusing on optimising their operational processes. The management of both companies will be working together with the heads of the production sites to develop and implement corresponding plans of action. More efficient production should lead to a decrease in costs and create additional capacities as the basis for further growth. In the medium term, Abbelen and Oscar Mayer plan to continue with their efforts to internationalise their sales and to make use of the resulting cross-selling potential on the basis of a common strategy. The companies in the group will also work together in product development and expand their offering in the premium segment. The More than Meals management team will also be assessing options for company acquisitions on an ongoing basis.

In a market characterised by consistently rapid growth and subject to virtually no cyclical fluctuations, we are creating the first European champion for chilled ready meals and snacks.

Responsible team member

KAI WIESENBACH, MANAGING DIRECTOR

Kai Wiesenbach can look back on more than twelve years of experience in the private equity sector. During this period, he has acquired extensive knowledge of various industries. Kai Wiesenbach has been involved in a large number of equity investments and divestments at Deutsche Beteiligungs AG, including Coperion, Heim & Haus and Lewa. He also acted as deal captain for the investment in Formel D, which was oncluded very successfully in 2016/2017.

Kai Wiesenbach has been with DBAG since 2004 and was appointed as a member of the Board of Management in 2010. Before joining DBAG, he graduated in economics from Frankfurt am Main’s Goethe University.

Kai Wiesenbach

Kai Wiesenbach joined Deutsche Beteiligungs AG in 2004 and became a Managing Director in 2010.

He earned a degree in Business Administration from Goethe University Frankfurt am Main focusing on finance and accounting.

Kai Wiesenbach can look back on more than twelve years of experience in private equity. During that time, he gained extensive expertise, particularly in mechanical and plant engineering and the automotive supplier sector. He was involved in numerous acquisitions and realisations, including Coperion, Heim & Haus and Lewa. He led the investment process in Formel D and More than Meals and sits on the advisory council of More than Meals.